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Month: October 2014

According to STARTHealthCare, three out of four Americans experience foot problems in a lifetime despite the fact that only a small group of individuals are born with foot problems. Calluses are caused by friction, and because feet tend to slide in sandals, calluses build up more quickly in summer.

Unlike edible fungi or mushrooms that live on dead vegetable matter, the fungi and yeast that infect the feet are specialized dermatophytes, meaning that they only feed on keratinized tissue such as hair, skin and nails. Fungal infection in the foot can be confined to the nails and may then spread to the skin, or the other way round, starting on the skin and then infecting the nails. Other names are tinea unguium, dermatophytic onychia, dermatophytosis of the nail, or ringworm of the nail. In the case of dermatophyte fungi and yeast, small invasions are usually dealt with by your body’s own natural resistance or defence mechanisms, provided you have a healthy immune system at the time. The first sign of fungal infection in the nails is a slight discolouration of the nail plate. Remember that pressure or friction is the cause of callous.

If you have diabetes or another condition that causes poor circulation to your feet, you’re at greater risk of complications. Corns are smaller than calluses and have a hard center surrounded by inflamed skin. Corns usually develop on parts of your feet that don’t bear weight, such as the tops and sides of your toes. Corns can be painful when pushed or may cause a dull ache. Calluses usually develop on the soles of the feet, especially under the heels or balls, on the palms, or on the knees. Calluses are rarely painful and vary in size and shape. They can be more than an inch in diameter, making them larger than corns. When shoes are too tight or have very high heels, they compress areas of your foot. Repeat two to three times; switch feet.

This condition is usually caused by abnormal stress along the plantar fascia from excessive pronation of the foot. Feet that roll in at the ankle will cause a pull along the plantar fascia, usually at the heel. Repeated pulling will damage the fibres of the fascia and lead to the pain of âplantar fasciitis’. Symptoms: Plantar fasciitis often leads to point tenderness on the inside portion of the heel where the heel and arch meet. This pain is usually worse in the morning when you first place your foot on the ground.

Patients with poor vision cutting nails too deep beneath crease line can lead to skin breakage and in patients with poor blood flow to foot can lead to major amputation.Proper nail cutting techniques should be learnt,toe nails should be cut straight,not beneath creaseline. At the center of a corn is often a very dense knot of skin called a core, which is located over the area of greatest friction or pressure. Firm, dry corns that form on the upper surfaces of the toes are called hard corns. Pliable, moist corns that form between the toes are called soft corns.